Mainstay
by heysiege
Summary: The story of how the town of the Eternal Flame began its descent into darkness, and how the Raposa learn to live with it. Mainly focused on Mari and Jowee's friendship developing over the years, but it also contains some more general antics throughout the other townsfolk as well.
1. Chapter 1

_Mainstay: (n.) a person or thing that acts as a chief support for something._

* * *

The Raposa Village was in a frenzy. Today was no ordinary day. Sure, there was business to be done, trades to be made, and other matters of the sort. But today, there was a special occasion: a wedding was taking place.

Isaac and Mya's wedding, to be exact. The two had known each since they were children, and a lot of the townsfolk had watched the two grow up together. The town had been excitedly shocked when they had announced their engagement a few months before, and eagerly chipped in to help prepare for their wedding. After many long months of preparation, the day had finally arrived. The decorations were all set up in front of the Forest Gate, and everyone in town was heading towards the setup for the wedding ceremony.

Among the Raposa were the mayor of the Raposa Village, and his five-year-old daughter, Mari. Mari was dressed in a puffy collared black dress with a purple sash across the waist. A small brooch accentuated the dress, and small wildflowers were adorned in her short, wavy hair. Her tiny hand grasped onto the mayor's as they walked towards the setup for the wedding.

"Look at the decorations, Mari. Doesn't it look just like an enchanted garden?" the mayor exclaimed to his daughter, pointing at the display in front of the Forest Gate. "Aren't you excited to throw the flower petals down the aisle?"

Mari shrugged her shoulders in response. Unlike the talkative, friendly mayor, Mari was pretty introverted and reserved. She got tired of things easily, and would rather be inside, doing activities such as reading. Well, trying to read with what words she knew, anyways.

"Can I sit down with Cookie after I throw the flower petals?" she asked. Mari was not in the mood to stand up for an hour in front of the whole town all by herself, mainly due to her fear of feeling like the center of attention. Sure, it might have seemed silly to a few, but to her, Mari just couldn't stand the feeling of everyone's eyes in her direction.

The mayor let out a small chuckle. "Sure, honey."

"You still remember what to do, right, Mari?" the mayor continued. "It's going to be just like the practice. When the music starts, walk down the aisle and throw the petals in the center, but-"

"But make it look pretty, right. I got it, Dad," Mari replied.

They soon arrived to a small tent behind the ceremony where the wedding party was huddling underneath, and the mayor left her with the group, just until the wedding started.

"Don't worry, Little Mari. You'll see me in a few minutes," the mayor assured his daughter, with a hand on her shoulder. "Just remember what you did in the rehearsal. I'll be up at the altar, and then when you're all done throwing the petals, you can go sit with Cookie, okay?" The mayor planted a kiss on the top of her head, and then he was off.

Mari was now stranded in the crowd of the wedding party, who were excitedly chattering amongst themselves, gushing about how pretty Mya's dress was, or how she and Isaac had both grown up so fast. Most of the Raposa were much older than Mari; she didn't really recognize anyone she knew. _They were probably just Mya and Isaac's family and friends_ , she thought to herself. She maneuvered around the group, trying to spot at least one person to talk to that she knew somewhat. After bumping her way through the maze, mostly filled with strangers, apologizing after she bumped into almost everyone, she sighed. Her legs hurt, and she was beginning to grow tired. She should've just stayed at home.

 _"Hmm…"_ she thought, furrowing her brows. _"Yeah… I COULD always just go home right now…"_

Mari knew her way all around the village, so it wouldn't be too difficult to get home by herself. She weaved her way out of the maze of Raposa, and started to set off.

Not even five seconds had passed after she set off when she suddenly bumped into a familiar face. Mari looked up to see a cheerful Doctor Cure, or as she was known by Mari, _"Miss Petra"_. She wore a wide-necked lavender dress, and a small arrangement of flowers was set on the top of her head.

"Well, if it isn't Little Mari!"

Mari's eyes widened. She didn't know _Petra_ was going to be part of the wedding party. She hadn't seen her since she went off to study medicine in Watersong… Mari turned around, leaped into her arms, and gave her the biggest, tightest hug her little arms could give.

"Miss Petra! I didn't know you were coming!" Mari exclaimed, pulling away from the embrace. "You're in the wedding ceremony too?"

"Of course I am! I couldn't miss my best friends' _wedding day_ ," she replied, bending down to Mari's level. "When I was around your age, Isaac, Mya, and I all used to go on adventures around town," she reminisced. Petra let out a breathy laugh. "As you get older, it gets so weird to see all your friends grow up right in front of you."

Mari's active imagination immediately brought to her mind an image of Raposa children, growing up like beanstalks, while one Raposa child remained the same size. They seemed to tower over the smaller Raposa. "How weird, exactly?" she asked back, with a confused look on her face.

"Well, weird in a good way. It's more of an 'interesting' kind of weird. As you start to grow, everything else around you grows," Petra replied. Mari nodded in response, but didn't respond. They stood in an awkward silence for a few seconds until Petra continued the conversation.

"So, speaking of friends, have you made any yet?"

Mari pursed her lips together and looked down towards her feet. "Well…"

"Come on, Mari, you have to have at least ONE friend here. Spending all day with your nose in a book won't get you any friends," Petra commented, nudging her with her elbow. Mari was about to counter her statement by saying Petra was her friend, but before she could say anything, Petra cut her off. "Uh-uh! Adults don't count for this."

Mari sighed, her head hanging down in shame. Petra felt upset for her. Pitied her, even. She knew how asocial little Mari was, and how she wanted friends who weren't just her father's acquaintances. She couldn't just hang around her father's friends for the rest of her life. She needed a friend of her own; someone around her own age, and Petra was going to help Mari find one.

Petra's eyes darted around the wedding party tent, determined to help Mari find a new friend. She squinted through the huddled group, trying to find at least ONE person who looked around Mari's age. After searching for a few seconds, Petra finally spotted someone.

He was a freckled, curly redheaded Raposa, who wore a loose violet dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows and some black slacks. His outfit was accentuated with a black bowtie. He held a small lavender pillow in one hand, and appeared to be rocking back and forth on his heels.

"How about him? He looks around your age," Petra said, pointing at him.

Mari seemed hesitant. "I dunno, I…"

Suddenly, a voice called for Petra from behind the forest. Petra turned her head towards the voice, yelled "coming!", then turned back to Mari.

"I'm sorry, Little Mari, I gotta go. I have to check on Mya. Maid of honor stuff," Petra explained to Mari. "But consider at least trying to make a friend here? For my sake, okay?"

Petra began to slightly jog away, picking up the hems of her lavender colored dress. Mari glanced back at the boy, then back towards Petra running off.

"I believe in you, Little Mari!" Petra called to her one last time before disappearing behind the trees.

Just like that, Mari was all alone again. Or, at least she thought she would be.

She glanced back at the boy again. Maybe she'd try to initiate a conversation. Mari walked back towards the tent and rejoined the wedding party huddled under the tent, making her way towards the boy holding the pillow, keeping a tight grip on her flower basket, and took a deep breath.

The boy turned his head as he noticed Mari approaching and gave her a welcoming, friendly smile as she approached him.

"Hi!" he greeted Mari. He then subtly pointed at the brooch adorning Mari's dress. "I like your dress. It's pretty!"

Mari was brought to the attention of her dress and looked down towards the brooch, slightly tugging at the fabric.

"Oh! Thank you!" she replied, still a bit shy. She smiled back. "I'm Mari, by the way. What's your name?" she asked, holding out her hand for him to shake.

"I'm Jowee!" he replied, returning the awkward handshake. He had a firm grip and shook her hand with confidence, which made Mari's limp arm feel like it was flying around. "So… are you one of the wedding people too?" he asked.

"Yeah! I'm a flower girl," Mari explained to him, proudly. "I get to throw flowers on the aisle to make it look pretty." She showed him the woven basket halfway full of lilac flower petals. He peered into the lattice basket, picked up a few of the petals, and threw them up into the air. The petals floated down and landed on their heads. Jowee laughed, picking off a few petals.

"Woah, that must be fun! I wanna be a flower girl, too," Jowee exclaimed. Mari giggled at his choice of words.

"Well, flower _boy_ , really," he continued, shrugging his mistake off. "All I'm stuck doing is carrying rings on a pillow down the aisle." A tone of discouragement leaked out of his voice. Jowee held out the small pillow to show Mari. Two rings were tied onto the pillow with a black ribbon.

"Well, the rings ARE very important," Mari commented back. "They're important for Isaac and Mya to show that they're married."

Jowee shrugged in response. After a few seconds, Mari looked around and leaned towards Jowee, dropping her voice to a whisper. "Hey, can I tell you a secret?" Jowee nodded.

"I… don't actually wanna be a flower girl. I mean, well… Not really? Just… I'm just kind of scared to walk down there, all by myself. I don't want everyone looking at me. It feels… weird. I don't know why," Mari told him.

"Hey, if I were a flower boy, I would totally walk with you!" Jowee replied back. He thought for a few seconds. "Don't worry, I know you'll do a good job of throwing those flowers!" he encouraged.

As soon as he finished his sentence, the plucks from a mandolin tuning and the rhythmic patterns from a small canvas drum echoed from the back of the setup.

The wedding was finally about to begin. Murmurs from the crowd began to come to a hush, and the wedding party made their way at the beginning of the aisle and began to line up in formation. As soon as everyone was ready, the chorus of the song began to play from the mandolin softly. Everyone turned around to look at the wedding procession. And little Mari was the very first in line.

All eyes were on her.

Mari was terrified. Her basket shook as much as her hands did.

Jowee peeked out from the middle of the wedding procession line, and noticed her trembling in fear. His memory flashed back to what Mari said about being nervous with everyone staring at her. Without thinking, Jowee ran from out of his spot in the line and right next to Mari. She turned her head to see him standing to her right.

"Jowee, come back!" a few Raposa angrily whispered towards him. Jowee didn't listen.

"Oh, Creator, that rapo's going to be the death of me," a Raposa in the wedding procession commented, putting a hand to their forehead while chuckling softly.

"Mari, I can walk with you if you want," Jowee whispered. "Everyone can look at me instead of you."

"Are you sure?" Mari asked. Jowee nodded reassuringly.

"What if I mess up…?"

"You can do it!" Jowee encouraged.

Mari took a deep breath.

She took a few steps forward, with Jowee walking on her right for moral support. She took the first handful of petals from the basket, and tossed them in front of her. They fluttered down onto the ground like falling leaves. Step after step, Mari kept grabbing petals and tossing them, her nerves calming down with every time she threw a handful. As she and Jowee headed towards the front of the aisle, she realized that this wasn't _too_ scary after all. It was… actually kind of fun. A small smile cracked on Mari's face.

As they reached the altar, Mari took one last handful of petals and _chucked_ them towards Isaac, which fluttered down onto his shoes. A few of the wedding attendees chuckled. Mari and Jowee headed to their designated spot on the right side of the altar.

"Why'd you throw the petals at Isaac?" Jowee whispered to Mari, stifling his giggles with one hand.

"The flower girl's job is to make the aisle pretty, _duh,_ " she said back, with a big grin plastered on her face.

As the wedding party continued making its way up to the altar, the mayor caught eye contact with Mari. His look seemed to say something along the lines of _"You sure you don't want to come sit with Cookie?"_ Mari gave him a thumbs-up to tell him that she was not leaving her spot until the ceremony was over.

The wedding party procession had eventually made its way to the sides of the altar, and after a while, Mya finally walked out from behind the forest in a crown of flowers and a flowing white dress. She was linking her arm with an older Raposa, who was most likely her father. Murmurs and gasps from the crowd echoed as she walked down the aisle. She was beaming profoundly. Mari glanced towards Isaac, and thought she saw a few tears forming his eyes. Although, she guessed that it could have just been that it was brighter out today, rather than it being dark due to the usual grey clouds covering the village.

 _"Can people cry because they're happy, too?"_ Mari thought.

The mayor led the wedding ceremony. He spouted a long yet powerful speech about how the Creator had created marriage to be a "culmination" of people coming together, not just as lovers, but also as friends, as workers, and as partners.

Mari tuned in to the speech. Her father was an excellent speaker, and even though she had grown tired of hearing him practice it over and over _and over_ again every night before the wedding, she was still drawn in to the power he put into those words _._ Maybe one day she would be able to speak as influentially as he did.

While the speech was very moving, it started to seem too drawn out for Mari. She tried her best not to fidget with the basket as it might draw attention, but she was getting _so bored_ having to listen for this long. Not only that, but it seemed like the sunlight was starting to burn up her shoulders. Mari tugged at her collar, trying to cool herself off. Cookie seemed to give her a sympathetic smile from the second row.

A few minutes passed, and after the speech had finished, it was time for Isaac and Mya to exchange vows. That was Jowee's cue to walk up to the couple and hand the mayor the pillow. Thankfully, his clumsiness didn't get to him as he went up to the altar and gave the mayor the pillow. He stood up there, holding the pillow for a few moments, as the couple untied the black ribbon holding the rings together. They reached for their rings, and began to exchange their vows, cueing Jowee to walk back to his place again.

As he walked carefully back to the side of the altar, he whispered towards Mari, "I did it! I didn't even trip this time!"

Mari recalled to the day before yesterday, when the wedding rehearsal had taken place. She remembered seeing a freckled boy enthusiastically run up to the altar to hand the pillow to the mayor, but slammed face first into the dirt and promptly dropping the pillow in the process. Many wedding party members gasped and ran up to him to see if he was okay, but he picked himself off the ground, grass stains on his clothing, with a big smile on his face. He replied with an "I'm fine!", and continued the rest of the rehearsal looking like a big, goofy mess.

"Wait, _that was you?!_ " Mari responded, her eyes widening. Jowee's face flushed out of embarrassment.

Jowee was about to respond when cheers from the crowd began to go up into the air. They whipped their heads around to see Isaac dipping Mya for a kiss. Mari and Jowee looked a bit shocked, their faces flushing from embarrassment as they spotted the two. They'd never seen anyone kiss so lovingly and… _deeply_ like that before. Not wanting to seem rude, they smiled and clapped along with the crowd. As Mya came back up from the dip, Mari swore she could see stars in her eyes.

The music started up again, and the newlywed couple was showered with flowers as they walked back down the aisle, beaming with pride. Mari and Jowee, walking right behind them, took the remaining flower petals and tossed them onto Isaac and Mya. Mari giggled as Jowee tossed the petals in funny ways, posing with his hands up every time he would throw a handful.

Mari was actually kind of glad she didn't go and sit down with Cookie. Or head home, for that matter. She was genuinely enjoying being part of the ceremony.

After the congratulations had finished, the attendees lingered near the setup as a few others went to set up the festival up north at the stage. They chatted amongst themselves how beautiful the ceremony was, and other things about the wedding. Mari and Jowee found themselves talking to each other near the tent once again.

"So, what do you like to do?" Jowee asked.

"Well, I like to read. My dad is teaching me," Mari pointed out the mayor in the crowd, who was talking to a few guests. They seemed to be complimenting him, and the mayor reacted with a sheepish shrug.

"He said my mother loved to write, so sometimes I read her books," she continued.

Jowee's eyes widened as he turned his head towards the mayor, then back to Mari. "Wait, you mean the MAYOR is your DAD?!" he exclaimed. "That's _so cool_!"

"Yeah! Once I get to be older, I'm going to be the mayor, like him," Mari explained. "But I feel like I might not be good. He's so good at making friends, and helping people, and talking…. Whenever I try to do that, I get all shaky," she continued with a tone of discouragement.

"Hey, we became friends today, right? You didn't get shaky when you talked to me," Jowee said.

 _Friends_. Mari liked the sound of that. She gave Jowee a soft smile.

"I think it just takes practice to talk like that," she responded thoughtfully. "Maybe I'll ask my dad about it."

They stood in silence for a few seconds, kicking at the dirt by their feet and eavesdropping on a few of the adults talking within earshot of them. Jowee finally broke the silence.

"So are you going to the festival after they finish setting it up?" Jowee asked her, changing the topic. Mari noticed he tended to change the subject abruptly quite a bit. "My family is going to be there! You know, my mom was actually the one playing the mandolin."

Before the wedding, Mari wasn't originally planning on going to the festival. Her dad said she could head home if she got tired after the wedding. But now? Her newfound friend was inviting her, and she guessed that the festival might be _kind of_ fun. Maybe she wouldn't get too overstimulated like other festivals she went to when she was younger.

"Yeah, I think I might!" she decided.

The sky, despite being so bright for that day, soon became dark as night approached. The Raposa headed up north to the stage where the festivities would begin. Stringed lights with small wildflowers were hung across the stage, and the scent of poached pengoon and Kori fruitcake wafted through the air. Mari and her father sat down at a table closest to the stage, decorated with a soft black tablecloth and a small wooden vase full of purple flowers. Mari had just climbed onto her seat when she heard a familiar voice come from the pathway.

"But mo-om, I was just trying to- oh look! There she is now!" Jowee exclaimed, pointing at Mari. "Can we sit with my friend? Pleeeeeeease?" Jowee looked up towards his mother with big eyes and sagged his shoulders.

His mother gave a chuckle, and gestured towards the table. "Go ahead!"

Just like that, Jowee made a beeline for the table and _sprinted_ towards Mari. His parents called after him to slow down, in fear that he might knock something over, but he steadily slowed his speed down as he approached Mari.

"Oh, Mari, is this a friend of yours?" the mayor asked.

"Yeah, this is Jowee! When I got scared, he walked with me down the aisle while I threw the flowers," Mari explained proudly. She turned her head towards Jowee once more. "Do you want to sit with us?"

Jowee's parents finally caught up to Jowee, struggling to keep their breath.

"Jowee... you can't just… run off… like that," Jowee's father panted. "I'm so sorry, Edwin, I hope we… didn't give you… a scare."

The mayor laughed. "It's alright, Bertrand. I don't think Mari seems too phased by it." He glanced over at the kids, who were already talking up a storm. "Would you like to sit with us?" he offered.

Jowee's mother laughed. "I'm sure it'll make Jowee happy to sit here."

They pulled out two wooden chairs from underneath the table and settled down, leaning on the backs of the chairs. Jowee's father sat to the left of Mari, and he bent his head down to greet her.

"Well, hello, little lady! You must be Jowee's new friend," he said.

"Yup! My name's Mari," she answered, giving a small smile.

"Ohhhh! So this is the Little Mari I've heard so much about!" Jowee's father exclaimed, rustling her hair. A few of the flowers fell out. "I can't believe it!" he said, turning back towards the mayor.

"I'm not THAT little!" Mari countered, pouting. She smoothed out her hair.

"She definitely won't be for long," the mayor commented, turning towards the two parents. "I wouldn't be surprised if she grew to be taller than me!" He chuckled.

"Jowee's also grown so much since I've seen him… He's so talkative, too!" the mayor continued. "I can see where he gets it from," he joked towards Jowee's mother.

"Oh, shut up, Edwin," she said back sarcastically, rolling her eyes and grinning.

Jowee's mother kept playing along to the joke, turning towards Jowee. "Jowee, do I _really_ talk as much as- Jowee?"

The three adults looked back over to where the kids were sitting, but they were nowhere in their seats. They glanced over around the stage to see that Mari and Jowee had run over to the food table, already loading their plates with food.

"Jowee! Don't get too much!" Jowee's mother called out to him. It was already too late, as the piles of food on Jowee's plate grew bigger and bigger.

"I swear, that boy's giving me the run-around," she said with a laugh, as she rested her elbows on the table. "Did you see how he ran to the front of the procession at the beginning of the ceremony? I was so worried he was going to mess the whole procession or do something reckless. But when I noticed him just helping Mari, I just couldn't stop him. I mean, how _sweet_ was that?" she commented, touching her hand to her heart.

"Mari told me she got _so_ nervous when everyone stared at her. I mean, how could I miss it? Her basket was shaking so much, I could've sworn the flowers might have fallen out," the mayor responded, leaning in his chair towards the two.

"Honestly, I'm just so glad to see Mari making a friend her age. She's never this… _open_ towards people," he continued, lowering his voice a bit. He looked over to see Mari and Jowee near the cake, trying to sneak a little taste of the frosting with their fingers.

Jowee's mother turned towards the mayor, dropping her voice down to a whisper. "You know, Mari has really grown from when I last saw her. I still can't believe it, Edwin. She looks _just like Bea_."

The mayor's expression became somber as he turned his head to look back at Mari, who was giggling at Jowee. The physical resemblance between her and her long gone mother was almost uncanny. Her hair was almost as curly and wild, and freckles were all over her arms and face, just like her mother's had been. She even had the same smile. The only characteristics the mayor had passed down to Mari, look-wise, were the hints of red in her hair.

"And look at that; she's even got _Bea's earrings_ ," she continued, pointing at the small golden hoops hanging from Mari's ears as she and Jowee walked back to the table with piles of food stacked on their plates.

"Oh, Jowee, I thought I told you not to get so much food," Jowee's mother scolded gently. "I don't want you getting a stomachache…"

Her expression lightened when Jowee set two plates in front of his parents. Mari did the same with her father. "Did… did you get us food, too?" she asked the two.

"We wanted to be nice!" Mari said, cocking her head and smiling.

The three adults stared down at their plates. Their plates were _loaded_ with pengoon, sliced fruit, and banya bread rolls. Mari and Jowee had definitely overestimated how much adults could eat.

"Jowee, this is really kind of you, but I don't know if I can even eat all of this," Jowee's father said. He could already feel the potential stomachache he would get if he attempted to eat it all.

"Maybe you could just take it home and save it for Lizzi," Jowee suggested, picking up a piece of fruit. He then whipped his head towards Mari excitedly with wide eyes. " _Oh my gosh!_ I never told you about Lizzi!" Jowee exclaimed. "She's my baby sister. She couldn't come to the party though, because she's too little. I'll have to show you her sometime!"

As Jowee continued to ramble on, his mother laughed at his sudden change of topics. As she did, she noticed a few Raposa out in front of the stage, ready to dance. She stood up from her chair, and stretched before bending down to her husband's chair.

"Well, I think it's time we got some music playing. Watch Jowee for me, will ya?" Jowee's mother asked, turning to Bertrand and pecking him on the cheek. "That mandolin can't play itself, you know."

"Go ahead, Inez. I can handle him," he replied, winking. Inez set off towards the stage, where her mandolin lay by a small stool. She picked it up, and double-checked the tuning on her strings before she strummed a soft melody.

The mayor turned back to Jowee's father, who had just began to eat his food. "So, Bertrand, I heard your family went to Watersong last month. How was the trip?"

"It was actually quite relaxing," Bertrand replied, swallowing a bite of pengoon. "A lot different than the more adventurous outings we go on, at least. We went to both the East and West Districts, and we got to see the famous Mayor Rose perform, as well."

"Her voice is probably the equivalent of an angel's… I don't know how she does it," he went on. "I heard she's about to have a child, too. How crazy is it that she's able to be an opera singer, a mayor of a country, AND a mother? You can tell she's really hard-working."

"Wow, _that_ is some dedication!" the mayor responded. "Well, besides exploring the city, did you at least get your adrenaline pumping a little bit during the trip like you wanted?" he asked.

"There were actually a few exciting things that happened there, yes! Watersong actually has a lot of beautiful waterfalls and beaches in the West District. We went swimming and rock-climbing there," Bertrand explained.

" _Everything_ there is musical, though," he continued, reminiscing in confusion. "I swear, this one waterfall we visited sounded like someone playing a xylophone."

"A xylophone? What's that?" Mari inquired. She and Jowee had been eavesdropping on the two dads' conversation.

"It's a big musical instrument made of wood. It kind of looks like a small table," Bertrand explained. "When you hit one of its bars with a mallet, it plays a music note."

"Maybe we could have the Cr…" the mayor stopped to correct himself. "I mean, maybe someone in town could build one and someone could learn to play. It's always nice to hear different music every so often," the mayor said.

"Oh, absolutely!" It would be so neat to bring more instruments to the Raposa Village," Bertrand went on. "We only have a few musicians here, and it would be nice to have more for special occasions and such." Bertrand turned towards Jowee. "I bet Jowee could learn one! If he did, he could maybe play duets with Inez…"

The table turned their heads towards Inez, who was strumming her mandolin onstage alongside an older Raposa who was playing the drums. A few of the Raposa were dancing in front of the stage to the music, which caused a few others to go up and dance as well.

"Woah, that looks like fun!" Jowee said, observing the Raposa dancing. "We should try that!" he suggested, turning to Mari.

"But… I don't even know how to dance," Mari answered.

"Neither do I. That's why you gotta copy the adults!" Jowee grabbed her hand and pulled her out to to the center of the dance grounds. "Come on, let's try it!"

As they reached an empty section, Jowee looked over his shoulder, trying to badly do his best impression of a person sashaying forward and backward again. Mari, not wanting to draw any attention, just bended her knees to the rhythm of the song. She wasn't ready to try anything too hard yet, like whatever Jowee was doing.

The mayor chuckled at the kids' antics. "Well, they certainly are trying their best."

* * *

As the night went on, the group of dancing Raposa began to grow bigger and bigger. The music became more upbeat, and the musicians even sang for a few songs. Mari went up to Isaac and Mya and congratulated them. They asked her about how she liked being a flower girl, and she explained the whole situation at the beginning of the to them. The two looked at each other, dropping their jaws and giggling, and Mari didn't seem to understand why.

Mari wasn't sure what to do dancing-wise, but it made Jowee happy to see her hanging around him. She decided to go up to a few of the adults and at least attempt to dance with them, and some willingly taught her a few basics. Mari danced with her father for a while, too, but the whole time, she just stood on his feet as he helped her dance.

Mari even took part in a few of the wedding activities. She watched Isaac and Mya break a ceramic vase into tiny pieces, to symbolize luck and a long lasting marriage. Inside the vase, she noticed that tiny pale shells had been inside the vase. She also joined a group of women, who were mostly Mya's friends, participating in the bouquet toss, but no matter how high Mari jumped, she wasn't able to catch it. Petra ended up catching it, despite her not being as tall and… nimble.

After many hours of dancing, the night was about to come to an end. Many Raposa had grown tired of dancing and sat down, but Jowee had not once gone to sit down since he got up to dance. Surprisingly, neither did Mari. Her little legs may have gotten sore, but she was enjoying Jowee's company and decided to keep hanging out near him. Her confidence had definitely risen a bit because of Jowee.

Jowee's mother had put down her mandolin, along with the drummer, who set his canvas drums to the side, and were beginning to walk off the stage for the final dance. The final dance was a tradition for important ceremonies in the Raposa Village, as it symbolized the event the Raposa were celebrating finally coming into being. While they weren't always mandatory for everyone to participate, it showed a lot of respect for the people the important event was being held for.

A few of the Raposa went and blew out most of the lights that illuminated the stage to show that the final dance was about to start. The Raposa began to form a circle, and one after another, started to clap their hands to a steady beat. The claps eventually turned into a polyrhythmic beat, as a few people made up their own rhythms that fell in line with the main beat. Mari and Jowee seemed a bit confused at first, but caught on to the main idea and clapped along as well.

Half of the Raposa formed a circle around the other half, who kept clapping along. They joined hands and circled around and around the others. Some skipped along to the rhythm, some simply just walked. After a few times, the group's circle started closing in on them. They lifted up their arms, still holding each other's hands, to give the other group a chance of circling. Petra eyed Mari as she held up her arms for Mari to walk under.

"Your turn now, Little Mari! Good luck!"

Mari mostly followed the lead of the other adults who followed. She grabbed onto Jowee's and her father's hand, and the circle began rotating again. While it was certainly different than the dancing she had done before, she was having a lot of fun doing… whatever this was.

As she skipped around in the circle, she caught a glimpse of Isaac and Mya. They were staring at each other, beaming so brightly it was almost like a light. They seemed ecstatic just standing together.

 _"I hope they stay like that forever,"_ Mari thought. _"They're very lucky."_

Soon, the dance started to disperse, and there was a roaring applause for the couple. Everyone began congratulating the two, and before everyone left for the night, they gave one last speech together.

"I'm really grateful for everyone coming out tonight," Isaac said, looking back towards Mya. "This has been probably the best night of my life. Mya and I, we've grown up together, a lot of you have seen us grow up together. It's still… mind-blowing that I got to marry my best friend."

"And we always will be best friends, no matter what," Mya said gently, smiling up at Isaac.

"Absolutely," Isaac responded to Mya, warm-heartedly. He turned back to the crowd. "Thanks again for joining us tonight. Today has felt… so magical. I'm really excited to see where Mya and I go next." Isaac wiped a tear from his eye, smiling.

Mya laughed sympathetically. "Aww, Isaac, don't cry! You're making me cry, too!" she said, as she pulled him in an embrace, tears forming in both of their eyes. The crowd awwed and chuckled in response. As they pulled away, they wiped the wetness away from their eyes, still beaming at each other.

"Well, unfortunately, the wedding has to end somewhere. We'll be cleaning up for a while, so if you'd like to help, we'll be out here for about another hour," Mya continued.

"No need to," the mayor spoke up, walking toward the front of the crowd. "We actually planned a team of a few people beforehand to help with that, so you two can head back home," he explained. A few Raposa stepped up behind him, while a few others waved from the crowd.

"R-Really?!" Isaac exclaimed. The mayor nodded back. "You've put so much work into this ceremony, Edwin. Thank you so, _so_ much."

"Go run along and get some rest, you've got a big trip ahead of you in the morning," Edwin replied. "I can handle the rest of it."

The couple smiled, and began to head home. Other Raposa began to do the same, and the group in front of the stage soon began to scatter once again. Mari got a bit nervous, though. She didn't want to stay and clean up with her father, as it was getting late, and she was getting tired. She went up to her dad, who was taking the decorative lights off the front of the stage.

"Dad, am I going to have to clean this up too? I'm so tiiiiiiired," she whined.

"I asked Jowee's parents to take you home tonight. They should still be here, go find them. I'll only be here for an hour," Edwin responded to Mari. "See them over by the pathway?" He pointed to Jowee and his family. Jowee looked like he was about to fall asleep. "Better hurry!" the mayor continued.

Mari jogged sleepily across the stage grounds towards Jowee and his parents, struggling to keep her eyes open. She stumbled on a rock as she approached them, and that made her just a bit more alert.

"My dad said… you're taking me home, right?" Mari asked, yawning in between words.

"Of course! We'll walk you home," Jowee's mother said. "You don't need any help getting ready for bed, do you?"

"I dunno… I'll try my best to, I guess…" Mari groggily answered.

"Well, we better get you home before both you AND Jowee fall asleep on us," his mother said, chuckling at the two. Jowee had nodded off, but he snapped his head up as soon as his eyelids shut and he tipped over. "Come along, now."

The four made their way along the western pathway. They seemed to have houses in the same centralized district of town, so it saved them a lot less running around town. It was a quiet walk, with no sounds except for the gravel crunching under their feet and the distant boisterous chatter from other wedding attendees. Everyone's legs started to feel weak, which caused the walk to be much slower than it would have been if everyone were more awake.

They finally had reached Mari's house, right in the center of town. They family went under the main awning to help her inside. Once they all got inside, Jowee's father lit a small, dim lamp and set it on a small table near the door, while Jowee's mother helped take the remaining flowers out of Mari's hair.

"Are you sure you don't need any more help?" Jowee's mother asked her, as she finished combing the tangles from Mari's auburn hair. The flowers from her hair were stacked on a pile on Mari's nightstand. Mari shook her head to say no.

Mari let out a big yawn. "Thank you for taking me home, Jowee's mom."

Jowee's mother laughed. "You can call me Inez if you'd like, Mari."

"Thank you, Inez," Mari repeated.

The family started to head out the doorway, leaving Mari standing a few feet behind the door in her house.

"Jowee, say good-night to Mari," Jowee's father said in a singing tone.

Despite Jowee being so sleepy, he ran towards Mari for a hug, sinking his head into her shoulder.

"Good night, Mari…" he mumbled. "Thanks for being my best friend today. I had a lot of fun."

"I did too," Mari whispered back, equally as sleepy as Jowee was. "See you next time, Jowee."

Jowee's father laughed. "Alright Jowee, let go of Mari. You need to go to bed, too."

Jowee slowly released the embrace, and sleepily walked towards the door. Mari waved at his family as they began to set off. They shut Mari's door, and they were once more off on the trail, this time to their house. Mari watched them from the window as she climbed under the quilt that lined her bed, still wearing her flower girl dress. She was too tired to change out of it. Her eyes began to flutter as soon as she hit the pillow, and within a few minutes, she was sound asleep.

* * *

Once Jowee and his family reached their house, just next-door to Mari's, Inez and Bertrand gave a few coins to a man who was watching over Lizzi. She was a tiny Raposa with curly brown locks no older than the age of two, and was sound asleep in Jowee's bed. As soon as the man exited, Inez promptly cleaned Jowee up and put him into his pajamas, which were just a grey soft long-sleeved shirt and sweatpants.

"I think Mari is my best friend now," he mumbled to his parents. "She's really nice, and she likes to listen to me talk." He paused to yawn.

"Is that so?" his mother asked, brushing out his ginger locks with a wooden comb.

"Yeah," he responded sleepily. "Did you know she also knows how to read, too?"

"Well, her father is very well educated," Inez informed, "so I wouldn't be so surprised to hear that little Mari's reading already."

"She's not THAT little!"

Inez laughed. "All right, Jowee. I'm sorry. Now get to bed. It's very late."

He crawled under the quilts on his bed, being careful not to wake up his little sister. "Can Lizzi sleep in my bed again?"

"Buddy, you sleep like a _starfish_. I don't want you waking her up by shoving her to the floor _again_ ," Inez told him. A memory of Inez's popped into her brain and reminded her of one night where she woke up to a loud thump and Lizzi crying as she lay on the wooden floor. Jowee was stretched out asleep across the bed, and had accidentally shoved his sister off the bed.

"Good night, mama," Jowee murmured as his eyes fluttered shut, his head snuggled to his pillow.

"Good night, little adventurer," his mother whispered to him as she kissed his forehead. She picked Lizzi out of his bed, who was still fast asleep. She backed up away from Jowee's bed and quietly across the room to her and Bertrand's bed on left side of the house, opposed to Jowee's bed underneath the stairs. Lizzi was carefully set down right next to Bertrand, who was looking at a small map of Watersong.

"It's so nice Jowee has finally found a friend his age, isn't it?" Inez said, climbing into the bed.

"I suppose it is…" Jowee's father replied, checking off places on the map with a small piece of charcoal. "It's good he's socializing with kids. But… I'm worried he might get too… attached."

Inez's content countenance suddenly changed as her jaw dropped and she furrowed her brow. "Your son makes a friend his age and you're worried he'll _get clingy?!_ Are you _serious_ , Bertrand?!"

"No, no, I didn't mean it like that," Bertrand stuttered. "I meant like… what if we… you know… go on adventures? Or… or have to leave town for good eventually? How do you think he'll feel?"

"Leave town _for good_?!" Inez sputtered, eyes growing wide in shock. "Are you _kidding_ me?! Where did you get this _outlandish_ idea?!"

"Well, you remember what happened with… with _Wilfre_. With the Book of Life torn up, who knows what state the town is going to be in soon," he whispered. "The Eternal Flame gets smaller and smaller every day. And the clouds… they get so big and dark. I've seen them starting to cover some of the _houses in town_. We might need a fresh start soon, Inez. It might not be as safe as we used to think."

Inez sighed. She had finally settled down in a nice town, made a few friends, and even had a few kids. She had never felt so welcomed in a town like this one in her life. After Wilfre had ripped up the Book of Life, however, Bertrand had been planning a lot of trips around the world, almost as if he was trying to avoid the town. While Inez dearly enjoyed adventuring with her family, she wanted at least to stay around for a while longer, at least until things went extremely downhill for the village.

"Can you give it at least a little time?" Inez whispered, still a bit frustrated. "I want the kids to have somewhat of a normal childhood. Traveling around constantly won't give them that. They need a place to call home, and people to call friends. Going on adventures are fun, yes, but they're kids, and they need to experience that as well."

Bertrand's heart sunk as he looked at Inez's heartbroken face. He was quiet for a moment, trying to find the right words to say.

"I'll give it a bit more time, okay?" he said. "I'm sorry I brought this up. You're right; we need to give the kids some growing room. It… it could just be the sleep getting to my brain." Bertrand yawned, and laid down on his pillow.

Inez, still not fully convinced, sighed in response. "Mmm… okay. Please, at least give me a chance." Inez blew out the oil lamp on the nightstand and lay back down. "Good night."

* * *

Meanwhile, while Mari was asleep in bed, strange images had popped into her dreams that night.

She envisioned a bright room, furnished with a white bed and a bright, bright window that would blind someone if they even tried to look out of it. Something was in the bed in a white gown, and in their arms laid a small creature, similar to a Raposa in proportion, swaddled in blue and white striped cloths. Except… where were its ears?

The creature also appeared to have no fur on its body at all, the only exception being the soft fuzz on top of its head. It was a strange color. Was it yellow? White? A mixture of both?

It cried out loudly, and the arms holding it gently swayed the creature back and forth.

 _"There, there, Michael…"_ a motherly voice said, coming from the… thing holding the small creature was. Was the small creature's name Michael?

The creature gradually stopped crying, and closed its eyes. _"See? Everything's alright."_ The creature with the motherly smiled, and upon closer inspection, her face looked fatigued. But yet, she was bursting with happiness.

A deeper voice spoke out from the left of her. _"Just wait until we introduce you to your big sister! She's going to be so excited to see you,"_ the voice said in a soft tone.

 _"I just know you're going to love H…"_

The voices slowly faded and faded until their words were unintelligible. Mari could only hear a few of the sounds coming from them, but nothing specific. Although, she could've sworn she heard one of them say the word "feather", but it could have just been how muted everything was getting. The window from the room suddenly became brighter and brighter, until everything in the room went white. The white soon faded to black, and that was the end of it.

Mari tossed and turned under the quilt, tensing up. While the strange dream had finally ended, it was only the beginning of a long series of nightmares that would start to appear for a long, long, while.

Who was Michael? And why did the dream feel so… hyperrealistic?

More importantly, _where were his ears?_


	2. be wary of what lurks

Three days had passed since Isaac and Mya's wedding. They, along with a few others who had traveled abroad for the wedding, had left on a ship to go to Watersong. Life in the town began to return to its regular schedule. Everything was less hectic, and the town could finally start to relax again…

Well, not for Jowee.

That morning, Jowee was abruptly woken up from a peaceful dream by his mother, who was nudging his shoulder. But Jowee couldn't find the energy to open his eyelids. It felt early, WAY too early for Jowee to be up. He didn't want to get up _just_ yet. It was too cozy and warm under the multiple layers of blankets.

"Hey, buddy, wake up," Inez whispered. "A friend of yours came over to play." She leaned over Jowee, giving him a gentle smile. She began to remove the layers of blankets burying Jowee in his bed.

"Come on, let's get you ready."

Jowee groggily sat up from his bed and rubbed his eyes. To his right, Mari and the mayor were sitting around a small table in the center of the house, sipping on some water from small, wooden cups offered to them. Mari gave a small wave towards him, setting down her cup.

Jowee's father was by the small stove in the back, stoking hot coals underneath the food he was preparing. The sweet and smoky aroma wafted through the air and into Jowee's nose. Jowee's stomach grumbled. It must be a banya flapjack kind of day… He knew that flapjack days could only mean something special.

"Come on, Jowee. If you get ready quickly, you can have a fresh flapjack," Jowee's mother persuaded. "How does that sound?"

This perked Jowee up a bit. He managed to kick the rest of the blankets off him, and shoved himself out of bed. He ran up to the table, and nearly jumped into a chair, causing the mayor's glass on the table to rattle. Who could blame him? His father's banya flapjacks were to DIE for. In his opinion, they probably were better than Cookie's, but no one would come up to Cookie and tell them _that_.

Inez let out a breathy laugh, as she examined Jowee. He was still in his pajamas, and his curly hair was a _tangled mess_. If she tried to comb through it now, it would probably break the comb. "Jowee, you do realize you're still in your pajamas, right?"

"I can't help it. Mari's here, AND Dad's making _flapjacks_ ," Jowee said, in his most informative tone. "And flapjack days can _only_ mean good things," he continued, pointing at his mother.

"Well, you won't be eating with our guests looking like that," she said, ruffling Jowee's matted hair. "Come on, I'll help you get ready." Jowee hopped down from the chair, slightly disappointed. His pajamas were so soft, and cozy… he didn't want to get into anything uncomfortable.

"Bertrand, where did you put the divider last?" Inez asked from across the room. Since the house was one giant room, Jowee and his family would occasionally set up a few big screen dividers to give each other privacy in parts of the house.

"I _think_ I put it on the wall by Jowee's bed; check there," Jowee's father turned from the small stove after flipping over a pancake. He gestured to the wall by the door. There it was: a wooden screen divider folded up, under the stairs, rested in between the wall and Jowee's bed.

Inez walked back to Jowee's bed to grab the divider. However, she had forgotten how _heavy_ it was, and struggled a bit to drag it out from the base of the bed. She pulled on it a bit more, but to no avail. Wanting to help out, Jowee ran over and tried to lift it up from the bottom.

It was certainly a humorous sight to watch. While Jowee's efforts did not help them both _in the slightest_ , they managed to drag it out in front of the nook of the stairs and unfold the divider. They stopped to catch their breath; meanwhile, Jowee collapsed on the floor, out of breath from all the efforts he made to help. Mari covered her mouth, trying to stifle her laughter.

Inez looked back down at Jowee, sprawled out by her feet. "All right, get off the floor, Jowee. You need to go get ready."

Jowee looked up at his mother, and began to act _overly_ dramatic as he crawled limply behind the divider, which just made Mari throw her head back and burst into _even more_ laughter.

Inez couldn't help but laugh a little as well. _Oh, Creator, this kid of hers…_

He was ridiculous, a huge goofball, but she loved her son for that.

Mari and the mayor turned back to each other, exchanging bewildered yet amused looks. Mari picked up her cup to take another drink of her water.

The two sat in silence for a few seconds, the only sounds ever interrupting the silence being the crackling embers coming from the stove and the wooden cups being placed back down on the table.

Jowee's father was the one to break the silence. "So, Mari," he said, flipping over a pancake before turning towards the table. "We're planning on going to the beach after breakfast. Would you like to join us and Jowee?"

The mayor turned towards his daughter. "Doesn't that sound like fun?" he asked. "It's supposed to be really nice today, too!"

"We're even planning on bringing out a basket of food to have a small luncheon there!" Jowee's father continued. "And we'll even bring over a few of Cookie's banya muffins," he said in a sing-song tone.

Now Chef Cookie's banya muffins were an offer Mari couldn't resist. Her mouth was already watering at the thought.

"Yeah! It sounds like fun!" Mari exclaimed. "Also, Cookie's banya muffins are my _favorite…_ " she continued, exaggerating on the end of her sentence. She slumped her shoulders, reminiscing about those delicious, _heavenly_ muffins, which made her father chuckle.

"Well, we can't resist _that_ offer," the mayor added, gesturing towards Mari. "We'd love to join!" He paused. "Actually, Bertrand, is it alright if you bring Mari along with you? I have a few things I need to help out with today, but I could be there by noon."

Bertrand waved it off. "Don't worry, Edwin! We can keep a lookout for her," he assured.

Bertrand continued flipping the pancakes on the small pan, the batter sizzling each time he would flip one over. He stacked the finished ones on a plate, sprinkling each with a sweet, powdery substance one by one. He finished it off by pouring a small bottle of thick syrup on top, and brought it to the table, proud of his creation. A small amount of steam floated from the stack into the air. Mari looked at the plate with eyes as wide as the pancakes themselves. They looked amazing…

Bertrand came back with a few ceramic plates and utensils and set them in front of Mari and the mayor. Mari glanced towards Bertrand, back to the pancakes, and back to Bertrand again.

He laughed, gesturing towards the stack. "Go ahead, help yourself!"

Soon after he spoke, Jowee came out from behind the divider, clothed in a light green shirt and beige pants that were a bit short on him. His hair was frizzy from being brushed out, and while it was still wildly curly, it wasn't as tangled and matted as it was when he woke up. His mother walked out from the divider as well, tying her hair into a braid with a ribbon that was around her arm. She stretched, and then began to fold the divider back up again to put away. Bertrand noticed her struggling, and walked over to help her.

Jowee turned his head towards the table, only to see the plate stacked with pancakes and the three others already beginning to eat. He jogged towards the table, scrambling into a chair, grabbed a pancake with his fork, and began to scarf it down quickly and quietly. Once he finished, he dropped his fork on his plate and wiped his mouth with a cloth napkin.

"Dad, you did REALLY good on these flapjacks this time," Jowee said, wiping away a few crumbs from his mouth. "I bet that if you got into a flapjack cooking contest against Cookie, you would win _for sure_!"

"Well, I wouldn't be too sure of that…" Jowee's father responded from across the room, looking a bit sheepish.

Mari piped up. "No, really! These are really, REALLY good". She placed down her fork, finishing the last bite on her plate. "Like, they taste all fluffy and melty inside your mouth…" she described, using small hand gestures to exaggerate her enjoyment. Jowee nodded in agreement.

Overwhelmed with the flattery, Jowee's father looked towards the mayor, who nodded to him in approval as well, as he took a bite of his food.

Jowee's father was known for putting his all into things, even if he thought they weren't the best in the world. He would have rather be out of the center of attention, but everyone was being too kind today, flattering him on his cooking skills. He decided to shove those feelings aside for the moment.

"Aw, well…" He shrugged his shoulders with a grin. "Thank you, all. I'm glad you enjoy them."

Jowee's parents began to walk towards the table. They had just finished putting away the divider, which was much easier than setting it up last time. Still a bit tired, Inez slumped into a chair and stabbed a pancake with her fork, placing it onto a ceramic plate. Bertrand had already eaten, and noticed Inez's current state. She had bags under her eyes, and would often turn back abruptly to check on her other child, still asleep in the bed.

"I can take the two to the beach if you're still tired," he said towards Inez, then turned towards the mayor. "If that's alright with you, of course." The mayor nodded.

Bertrand bent down towards Mari and Jowee. Jowee was teaching her a rhythmic hand game. He paused, noticing his father bend down toward him. "You two ready to go have fun at the beach?"

"Yeah!"

He opened the front door and led the way for the two. Bertrand gave a wave to the mayor and Inez, who were still talking, and shut the door gently.

The three began to head eastward, past the mayor's house and towards the town wishing well.

"Um, Dad, the beach is THAT way." Jowee pointed northward, at a pathway with a sign on it that read " _Beach - Up North"._

Jowee leaned towards Mari to whisper something to her. "I think he's lost. The beach is over that way." He began to jog towards the northern path, dragging Mari along by her wrist. "Come on, we're gonna go find so much treasure…." Mari struggled to keep up.

"Not just yet, Jowee," his father interrupted. "I have to run an errand at the general shop. You wait over there," he said, pointing near the wishing well, just south of the store. "I'll be back in a few minutes!"

Mari, but especially Jowee, slumped over and dragged their feet over towards the well. It was surrounded by a small pile of gravel, which made the kids' footsteps much…. crunchier, as they kicked the pebbles when they walked.

"You be careful, alright?" he called one last time before heading into the store. The bells hanging from the door jingled as the door swung open, and then shut again.

The two were left leaning against the well. Mari slouched down, and began to pick at the pebbles around the well. It was pretty quiet between the two; nothing but the crunching of gravel and the whistling wind filled in the silence.

Jowee piped up, breaking the silence. "Did you know that this well is magical?"

Mari looked confused. "That can't be true," she responded, shaking her head. "Magic is only in fairy tales."

"But it's TRUE!" Jowee countered. "I heard that on the other side of the wishing well, you'd find a _brand new_ village at the bottom. And not only are there raposa down there. There's other creatures there too!"

Mari's ears perked up. "Like what?" she asked.

"Well, I heard that there's these things called 'Humans' that live with them. They're like this kind of Baki, but they're like, NICE Baki."

Mari began to listen more intently. "Nice Baki?"

Jowee continued rambling. "Yeah. And I've heard that these humans don't even have ears. Like _at all_." Mari cocked her head in response. "I don't think I'd want to meet a human though. They sound weird." He shrugged and scrunched up his face, which caused Mari to laugh.

As Mari stood up again, she brushed off her dress and grabbed a handful of pebbles from the ground. A few fell down from her hand and onto the ground again. She glanced at the pebbles in her hand, then back to the well again.

"Do you think they can get stuff we throw in the well? I wanna try something."

Leaning over the edge of the well, Mari began to throw the pebbles down the well, one by one. She listened intently as the pebbles dropped down, trying to hear how deep the well was. After a few seconds, Mari was left with a few remnants, which she brushed off from her palm of her hand into the well.

Mari pushed herself away from the "Hm… Nothing happened," she said, a bit disappointed.

Jowee caught on to the idea, picking up a few pebbles to throw down himself. "Maybe they want bigger rocks…?"

They both bent down and scrounged the ground for any pebbles that were bigger than the others. If they found something good enough, it was a possibility the so called "village" would give something back…

Mari found a few bigger sized rocks from the pile, and threw them all into the well, watching them fall. Meanwhile, Jowee was still gathering a few, when out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something shiny near the base of the well. It couldn't have been a rock. Rocks weren't shiny like… whatever that was. He squinted his eyes, trying to get a better look.

"Oh? What's this?"

He sifted through the rocks with his hands, shoving them into small piles. After digging, he finally spotted the source of the glint of light: a shiny silver coin.

"Wait, Mari, maybe the well doesn't want rocks," he suggested, looking up at her. She had just dumped all her rocks into the well. "Maybe we should try… this coin…" He held up the coin with his thumb and forefinger. It still had a bit of dust on it. More interested in the coin, Mari let the pebbles in her hand fall to the ground.

"Try it!"

Jowee stood up, peered over the well once more, and dropped the coin. The two watched the coin fall down, down, down... until it had finally descended into the darkest part of the well. Funnily enough, the glint of light from the coin was starting to become visible again… but this time, there were _five_ lights. They were floating up from the well.

"Woah… Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Mari asked, turning to Jowee with wide eyes. She quickly whipped her head towards the well again, not wanting to miss what was happening.

The glints of light began to become bigger and bigger, until they had finally floated to the top of the well and flew towards Jowee. He noticed that they were five shiny rapo-coins, just like the one he had dropped down moments ago. He tried to catch them with his hands as they flew toward his face. Three of the coins were caught, while the other two fell to the ground. As he went to pick them up, Mari and Jowee looked at each other, shocked and excited.

"Look at that!" Jowee stood up and held out the five coins in his palms. "I never thought the well would do THAT!"

Mari picked up a coin and examined it, still in awe. "Maybe it's the town saying thank y-"

She was interrupted by a stern voice. "MARI! What are you DOING over there?!"

Mari and Jowee whipped their heads around, only to be greeted with a very stern looking mayor. He was approaching them quickly.

After stumbling on the gravel for a second, Mari and Jowee began to run away from the well, to the side of Isaac's shop. They were definitely in trouble.

But why? It was just a regular old well. They weren't doing anything bad…

He speed-walked over to the kids on the side of the shop, and towered over the two.

"You know that well is not safe to play around! I cannot have you two getting hurt!" The mayor's expression turned into a concerned state, and his past-angered stance became less stiff. He let out a deep breath. "Please don't play there again."

"But we didn't-" Mari started.

"I can't have you getting hurt, Mari. You're only five years old; what if you fell into the well?"

As she looked up at her father's face, covered with anger and worry, Mari was unsure of what to say. She wanted to tell him about the coins that Jowee had received from the well, and how there might actually be a _village_ down the well, but at the same time, she wondered, _what if it was all just some made up story? What if she did fall down, and she got hurt, or worse…?_

Mari hung her head down.

"Where is that father of yours, anyways?" The mayor turned towards Jowee, who gestured to the shop. It was a coincidence that Bertrand walked out at the exact moment he pointed. In his arms was a large quilt, and dangling from his fingers was a key on a chain. He struggled to lock the shop door, trying to keep a grip on the key slipping from his fingers.

As he attempted to close the door, he turned his head to find the three sets of eyes glancing up at him. Judging from the mayor's distressed countenance, Bertrand realized something was wrong, and rushed over to the two, leaving the key in the lock.

"Is something the matter?"

The mayor pulled him towards the side. "They were playing by the well. I know that doesn't sound like a big deal, but I'm worried if they get to careless, they might…" The mayor began to stumble over his words. "They might fall. Do you remember what happened with Karina when she fell down there? Who knows where they might end up if that happened?"

Bertrand wasn't sure what to think of the situation. He didn't mind that his son was playing so close to something so "dangerous"; after all, his family was all about adventure. The mayor, on the other hand... he had gone through so many losses. He could understand why he was so worried about the two, but he knew Jowee better. After all, it was just a well.

"Oh- Of course, Edwin. I'll make sure he avoids playing near there," he lied through his teeth.

The mayor let out a quiet sigh. "Thank you, Bertrand. I know you're probably all right with him being near there, but…" The mayor brought his voice down to a whisper. "I'm worried about Mari. I want her to have fun, but… I don't want her to get severely hurt, either."

"I understand."

Bertrand beckoned with his hand for Mari and Jowee. Their ears had drooped down.

"Come on, you two. It's beach time!"

The two children perked up, cheering to themselves. They began to follow Jowee's father up the trail, with skips in their steps. Bertrand realized he had left Isaac's spare key in the door, and rushed back towards the shop to grab it.

After managing to lock up the shop again, he turned the mayor, who was watching Mari and Jowee run up the trail.

"And don't worry, I'll make sure they're safe." Bertrand gave the mayor a reassuring smile. He sent the mayor off with a pat on the back, and jogged up the northern path to catch up with the two.

* * *

After much anticipation from the two, Mari and Jowee had finally made it to the beach. Bertrand had spread the quilt across the sand, taking in the little amount of sun that wasn't blocked by the clouds, while also managing to watch over the two kids.

"Make sure not to go out too deep!" he called out to the two.

While Mari had been to the northern docks with her father several times before, she had never gone to the beach to have fun. She waded into the ocean as far as she could go without getting the hem of her dress wet. She didn't mind the bitter coldness of the water; it wasn't all that bad.

Jowee, on the other hand, remained near the soft, wet sand that had been touched by the ocean. The sand where the land and the ocean met _always_ had the best treasure, he believed. Digging with his hands, he began to form a hole in the sand, only for it to be washed up by the ocean when the waves flooded in. The waves would always leave him with a half-dug pool, slowly filling up with sand again. Jowee decided that the endless loop of digging and flooding was not going to work for him, and moved away from the waves to start digging again.

The only "treasure" he was able to find were pieces of broken seashells. Not exactly treasure, but the pinkish ones looked kind of shiny. He decided to keep them, shoving them into one of his pockets.

"Hey, Mari!" Jowee called out to her, still wading in the ocean. "Have you found treasure yet?"

"It's too deep to dig here!" she called back, cupping her hands around her mouth.

"What?"

Mari picked up the hem of her dress, which had become wet around the edges, and waded towards the shore. A draft blew from her left, and she began to shiver, realizing how cold the ocean water really was.

"I s-said… It's t-too deep to dig th-there," she repeated through chattering teeth.

Jowee noted her shivering. "Do you need a blanket or something?"

"I'm fine! Really," she assured him. She wasn't lying, she was having fun. She didn't mind how cold the water was; it wasn't as if it had snowed recently. The clouds forming over the town were about to say otherwise.

Jowee stepped into the ocean water. A chill went from his feet to his head. "How can you _like_ how cold this is?!"

Mari scoffed. "It's not THAT bad." She dipped her hands into the ocean water, and splashed Jowee. "You're just scared," she teased.

"Am not." Jowee kicked some water at her, giggling.

"Are too."

"Am not!"

" _Are too!"_

The splashing fight went on for quite some time, leading them deeper into the water. They were up to their knees in the icy water, and soon enough Jowee was soaked, after Mari had flung so much water at him it knocked him over. Mari was worried he might drown, but he pushed himself up, unfazed. They found themselves in fits of giggles.

Mari stepped back into a stance to fling a great wave of water at him, when she felt something smooth and glassy underneath her feet. Something that _wasn't_ sand. She felt around the bottom of the ocean with her foot, brushing off the sand caked around the object.

"Wait, Jowee, stop." She reached down towards the object, which, to her surprise, hadn't been washed away by any waves yet. "I think I might have found some treasure!"

Mari grabbed the object out of the water. She was surprised to find a glass bottle with a note inside. The bottle was sealed with a cork. She held the bottle over her head triumphantly; the water droplets that remained on the bottle dripped onto Mari's head.

She made her way back to shore, treading through the water. "Come on! Let's open it!"

Mari walked towards the blanket, grimacing with every step she took. Gritty sand began to cake the bottom of her feet, and every few steps, she would try to kick it off. She multitasked the kicking with trying to pull the cork out of the bottle with her hands. She resorted to pulling the cork out with her teeth instead, which resulted in a loud pop.

She pulled the cork from out of her teeth, leaving behind deep bite marks. Mari sat down on the blanket, being ever so careful to not get any sand on it, and shook the bottle upside down. She pulled the paper in the bottle out with her thumb and forefinger. Jowee made it to Mari after struggling to wade back to shore, and chose to sit on the sand instead of on the blanket.

"What does it say?" Jowee leaned over the rolled-up paper. He was still soaking wet from playing in the ocean, and drops of water from his hair dripped down. Mari shoved him away.

"Hey! Be careful!" she whined. "We can't ruin this!"

"Ruin what?"

Jowee's father looked up from a book, and towards the two kids. His eyes widened, surprised by the possibility that the kids were able to find "treasure". "Wow! You two _found_ that?"

Mari nodded, proud of her accomplishment. She turned back to the bottle and unrolled the paper, setting it on the ground. This was not the wisest idea, as the paper kept rolling back up. Mari resorted to holding it open with her hands. She glanced over the opened paper.

It was a letter, written in scribbly handwriting. It looked fairly old, but it looked like it could have been written fairly recently. Mari squinted at the handwriting, trying to make out anything that was legible.

"What's it say?"

"Hold on, I'm trying to see…" Mari held the letter closer to her face.

"It says… 'De-Dear'…. 'Dear Bea-ah'…" Mari stumbled over the words, still struggling to read the messy handwriting. "Spelled B-E-A."

Mari's face scrunched up. She tapped Jowee's father on the shoulder. "Wait, do you say it ' _beeeee'_ or ' _bee-ah'_?"

He faced Mari, a confused expression plastering his face. "Bea? Spelled B-E-A?"

Mari nodded.

"Let me see the letter." Mari handed it over, proud of herself for reading the first two words out loud.

He glanced through the letter, and immediately recognized the handwriting. The letter was embellished with a leaning, swooped signature at the bottom, whose signature could only be the mayor's. His suspicions were right. This letter wasn't to just any person named Bea; this was a letter to the mayor's late wife.

 _Mari's mother._

Bertrand rolled up the letter and shoved it back into the bottle. "This letter isn't for you two to read."

Mari became agitated. "But why?! I found it!"

"Yeah, I wanna see what it is, too!" Jowee added. "It's treasure!"

Bertrand reached for the cork, pushing it back in the bottle. It was covered in a bit of saliva, and was slimy to the touch. He grimaced. His expression changed back to seriousness in almost an instant.

"Mari, I'll have to give this to your father. If you want to know about it, ask him."

She pouted, crossing her arms, and tears welled up in her eyes. "B-but I… I found it." Her voice had reached a harsh whisper, preventing herself from letting any tears fall out. "That isn't fair."

Jowee leaned over, trying to console her by placing a hand on her shoulder. "We can always find more treasure…"

Mari didn't look up from her spot.

"I bet that hill with that big rock has some!" Jowee added, trying to cheer her up. "I've found stuff there all the time."

He stood up. Sand had gotten into his hair (which was unruly as it was sandy), and all over his legs. A few stray grains of sand flew off, and landed onto the blanket.

"Come on, Mari. I'll show you. I bet the treasure there is way better." Jowee gave a solemn nod.

Wiping away the built up tears, Mari stood up, not fully trusting Jowee about his gossip of treasure. She dragged her feet behind Jowee, who was skipping away.

"We'll be right back, Dad!" Jowee called out. "We're going to the hill with the rock!"

* * *

It was a steep ascent up the hill (as they sprinted the whole way up there), but they made it to the top, stopping to catch their breath at a boulder that rest on top of the hill.

"Alright, where could that treasure be?" Mari wondered, slowly regaining her breath.

Jowee made his way to one side of the hill. Several types of trees and bushes were abundant. They looked… prickly.

"All the best treasure can be found in the plants!" He picked out a few berries that were hanging on a nearby bush. Mari sulked. How did Jowee find _berries_ as an equivalent for _treasure_?

Mari marched her way over to where Jowee stood. "If we're finding treasure, we're finding REAL treasure." She crossed her arms. "NOT berries."

Jowee wasn't phased by Mari's frustration. "Okay! I bet if we go farther, there'll be better treasure!"

He began to shove his way through the bushes, the leaves snagging onto his shirt. Well, not only was he covered in a mixture of saltwater and sand, but the leaves topped it off. It made Jowee scratch at his neck.

Mari followed him through the bushes, being cautious to not rip her dress on the sharp leaves. The vines seemed to increase in number the further they ventured.

This almost instantaneously became unexciting for Mari. She turned around, trying to clear a pathway through the bushes.

"Come on, Jowee. This isn't fun anymore."

Jowee grabbed her arm. "Aw, come on, Mari. It could be! We just need to keep looking!"

She took a few steps back, Jowee following her movements. Much to her surprise, she stumbled backwards. There was no ground under her heels anymore. Or, her feet, for that matter.

They had walked right off the edge of the cliff, and Mari and Jowee fell, down, down, down, letting out a cry…

before landing face first into another pile of sand.

* * *

Mari pushed herself off the ground and brushed the sand off her dress. As she began to stand up, rubbing her shoulder, her face lit up with fear and awe.

"I've never seen THIS part of the beach before…"

The two found themselves in a small cove, east of the beach. The water was a much more vibrant, saturated blue, compared to the cooler colored water on the other side of the cove. It was also surrounded by thick trees and prickly vines, and a small hill from which they tumbled down divided it off from the main beach area, covered in more flora. It would be impossible to get back to the beach that way without getting tangled in the bushes. They would have to find a different way out.

However, there was one problem: how would they be able to leave? There were no exits. Well, at least not anymore…

The safest way out had been sealed off with thick, grey clouds, which were slowly growing bigger and bigger.

"This doesn't look safe…" Mari began to grow fearful. She tapped a finger on Jowee's shoulder. "We need to get out of here…"

Jowee, however, was not paying attention to her. He was observing the dark clouds, which were slowly growing in size, and approached them slowly. There was something absolutely fascinating and intriguing about them, as they seemed to scream out "adventure" to him.

Mari, on the other hand? A siren had been blaring inside her head as soon as she laid eyes on the clouds. The word "DANGER!" repeated through her head like a broken record.

Jowee was finally on the edge of the cloud barrier, and began to inspect it. _There had to be a safe way out_ , he thought…

"Jowee, what are you doing?!" Mari was tense with worry. What if the clouds were actually dangerous, like she suspected? She couldn't bear to see her newfound friend get hurt.

Being the impulsive little kid that he was, Jowee stuck his hand into the shadow. Nothing happened. Little by little, he stuck his hand in further and soon enough, his whole right arm had been engulfed in the cloud. A cold wave rushed over his body.

"See, Mari?" said Jowee, fascinated. "It's not that bad! It's just kind of cold."

Mari grasped onto Jowee's other arm, unexposed to the dark clouds. "Jowee, let's go… this isn't safe…" She was trembling.

"Oh, come on! I'm sure we could make it this-"

He froze.

Something else had begun to grasp his other arm, from deep within the clouds, and was slowly creeping up his arm. It felt like a cold and… somewhat _slimy_ hand. Another arm quickly popped out from the clouds as well, and began grabbing Jowee by his right ankle. As the hand came into view, peeking out of the clouds, it became more relevant on what the… thing… actually was.

The hand was made of pure shadow. It had begun dragging Jowee into the clouds with extreme force. His blood ran cold, and he stood paralyzed with fear as the shadow being began to drag him in.

"MARI, HELP! _MARI!_ "

An expression of pure terror had been plastered onto Jowee's face as he turned to Mari and began to scream out for her help.

The further Jowee sunk into the clouds, it became colder, and colder, until his entire hand felt like it was made of ice. He needed someone to pull him out of there; it was his only chance to escape the dark abyss of clouds that were drawing him in.

He was thankful that Mari had grabbed onto his arm beforehand. Her grip tightened around his forearm, and she began to attempt to pull him out of the clouds. The sand under her heels made it hard for her to keep her balance, and she nearly tipped over as she struggled to tug him out. Nevertheless, Mari persevered.

Jowee's struggling eventually led him to get his arm free, and while it was still stiff from coldness, he managed to fling it out of the clouds, reaching towards Mari. He felt a tingly sensation as his arm came out of the clouds. He thought of it like the sensation of when someone comes inside from the bitter, cold, snow and into a tub full of steaming, hot water.

Mari managed to quickly grab onto Jowee's other arm, which was ice cold to the touch, and began to use all of her strength to pull him out of the clouds. It seemed to go a bit easier from there, as the only thing pulling Jowee the opposite direction was a shadow creature at his ankle.

After delivering one more big, final tug, the shadow creature's grip from Jowee's ankle loosened. Jowee came flying from the clouds, and face-planted onto the cool sand. He quickly sat up, brushing off the sand that was stuck on his cheek, and turned back to the clouds. He observed Mari facing the clouds, catching her breath.

She jolted towards Jowee as she stood up, which caused her hair to bounce a little bit. The grains of sand that had been caught in her hair when she fell onto the sand ended up hitting Mari in the face, and she flinched.

She approached Jowee with a careful mindset as he began to stand up, greeting him with a warm, yet _tight_ embrace. She buried her head into his shoulder.

"Are you okay?! I was so scared!"

"Uh.. yeah. 'M fine," Jowee muttered, out of breath. Mari gave _really_ tight hugs _._

Oh, well. That wasn't what mattered right now. He was alive, for one thing. He returned the embrace.

From the corner of her eye, Mari could see the fog growing bigger. Out of instinct, she grabbed Jowee's arm again, and headed to the hill from where they fell from.

"The cloud is getting bigger," Mari sped through the sentence. "Come on, we need to get out of here!"

They both began to run towards the cliff they fell off as the cloud slowly creeped closer and closer to them. They needed to escape, and quickly. It was only a matter of time before the cloud covered the entire cove. If they didn't make it out in time, they would be trapped in the cove, lost in the dark clouds forever.

The two managed to hoist themselves back onto the steep cliff they had fallen from with the help of a boulder close to the cliff. It was a bit tall for them, but with a few jumps, they pushed themselves onto the edge and looked down, watching the clouds begin to cover more of the cove.

As they balanced along the edge of the cliff, it seemed much more… abundant in nature than they thought. There was no way they would be able to get through without getting stuck in all the bushes. They were all prickly, and thick, and… well, bushy. If they walked through it, they'd get even more injuries compared to a minute ago, where they nearly got pulled into a shadow cloud. On the other hand, if they didn't, they'd have to swim to the other side in their good clothing. The bad side of that was that they didn't know how to. Not to mention, the water was probably getting too cold to swim in…

Either way, they had no choice. The clouds had covered the entirety of the cove's beach, and they had to get out somehow that resulted in as little injury as possible. They quickly scanned the safest route through the bushes to take out of the cove, treading and shoving their way through the prickly leaves, trying to get as far away from the clouds as possible.

The two soon made their way out of the bushes, covered in leaves. A few twigs even managed to find their way into their hair. Mari and Jowee couldn't be confronted looking like this; their parents would get worried and scold them. Even worse, if they found about what happened with Jowee and the clouds, a serious town meeting would have to come into play.

Mari quickly brushed herself off and began to follow Jowee downhill, nearly tripping over a boulder that sat on top of the hill. Her father was not going to be happy with this. The way he had reacted when he found the two playing by the well made him worried; who _knew_ what was going to happen if he found out about them almost getting pulled into whatever those clouds were.

Mari and Jowee were almost at the beach. Just one sharp turn, and they'd be back where they started. Just a few more steps-

Boom. Something tall was blocking their way, and they had run right into it, causing them to fall down again. They shook their heads and looked up, only to realize they had bumped into Jowee's parents and the mayor, who were looking down at them worriedly. Jowee's mother was grasping Lizzi, Jowee's sister, who was balanced on her hip; meanwhile, both Jowee's father and the mayor were gasping for air, out of breath from sprinting from the beach to the location where they heard Jowee scream for help.

The mayor bent down and scooped Mari into his arms. Bertrand and Inez did the same to Jowee.

"Are you two alright? We heard Jowee yell, and-"

The mayor couldn't continue. He was too out of breath.

"I'm sorry, Dad." Mari's voice was hushed. A lump formed in her throat. "I do need to be careful, like you told me."

The mayor gave her a confused look. "What are you talking about, Mari?"

Mari pointed towards the billowing clouds that had swallowed the cove. "Jowee almost got… pulled in there. _Something_ was in those clouds... pulling him in," she choked out. The mayor's face went pale.

Big tears had formed in her eyes, and began rolling down her face. "I… I saw a hand grab his leg, and… it looked…"

"It looked like a monster…"

The two turned toward Jowee and his family, scooping him up in his arms. He was shaking, and his face was buried into his father's shoulder. Was it from fear? Was it from the cold? Maybe both?

They all decided going home was the best decision.

* * *

The mayor paced around the house for what seemed to be hours; on occasion taking a glance at his daughter, fast asleep in her bed. His mind raced.

How long had that shadow been there? What was in that shadow? Was this another one of Wilfre's tricks?

He needed to get his mind off what could have happened. Wiping his forehead, he sat down at the small table in the center of the house. Books and papers were scattered all over the table. He picked one up, reading the illegible scribbles at the bottom. It had something to do with the pay of a house being built across town, dated three years back.

Too old. He needed something different. Something… less understandable. Something more recent. Picking up another sheet, he glanced at an unfinished document.

A vacate notice from Cricket. He, along with his brother and nephew, was leaving in one month.

Reason for leaving: "Strange anomalies occur too frequently".

Below the written answer, a smaller line of text was written in snoopy handwriting.

" _(Also, Unagi annoys the shit out of me.)"_

The mayor pretended to ignore the last line, rolling his eyes in amusement.

That vacate notice was the spark in the mayor's head that told him he couldn't ignore whatever this was forever. Ever since Wilfre had ripped up the Book of Life, strange things had happened all over the town. Reports of warped buildings or disappearing structures frequently popped up, but shadow? With some kind of bloodthirsty creatures in it? The thought wouldn't go away.

A town meeting would have to come into play.

* * *

"Wait, so you're saying that we should evacuate the northern part of town? But it's in a good living condition! Do you know how _crowded_ it will get?!"

A group of raposa had met at the Eternal Flame to discuss the fate of the northern part of town. It wasn't the best place to meet, as clouds darkened overhead and a chilling wind rushed by. It was uncharacteristic of the weather compared to earlier that day, which only had a slight chill. Spring should have been in full bloom moons ago. Several raposa were bundled in layers of blankets and coats, wrapped around their shoulders.

"I am just saying it could be a good idea to relocate everyone south! In case whatever that thing is spreads." A huff came from Cricket, who seemed unbothered by the cold. A visible cloud formed from his breath, which dissipated into the air.

"Why would this even matter to you? _You're moving away!_ "

Another debate between Unagi and Cricket had arisen. At almost every town meeting, they seemed to argue about every little instance they couldn't agree on. This was the fifty-sixth time an argument had happened in one of the meetings. The mayor added a tally mark to his journal, keeping count of every instance passive tones would be exchanged, or if another debate broke out. The mayor, along with several others, let out a subtle sigh.

"Now, now, there's no need to debate," the mayor interjected, breaking the two apart from each other. Even so, it felt like volts of electricity coursed in the space between the two, as they gave each other dirty glares. "Tell us your reasons why you think staying up north would be alright, Unagi."

"I've lived in the northern part of town my whole life." Unagi crossed his arms. "My parents grew up there. It's an important place for me. I won't step foot outside there even if it meant being consumed by the shadow."

The mayor grimaced at Unagi's unsafe mindset. "And you, Cricket?"

He inhaled. "My job is to make sure the people of this town are safe. I feel if we were to let people stay in the northern area, disastrous atrocities could occur." Cricket's face fell. "You know what happened with Mari and Jowee. They're only small children. What if that happened to us?"

The group murmured amongst themselves. Cricket was right… but then again, he was moving away. Why listen to him if he was planning on leaving town in the first place?

Unagi huffed for a second time. "I can be safe up north. I'll go as far as Rapo City if it means I'm safe. And you cannot convince me otherwise."

He turned away, and headed up the trail northward, muttering to himself. "This is ridiculous. I don't need someone who's leaving town to find his _boyfriend_ to tell me where to go."

Cricket covered his mouth to hide the embarrassment plastered on his face. Unagi wasn't completely wrong; he _was_ planning on finding Zsasha, but… not like that. _Not yet, anyways._

He pretended to ignore him and turned back to the crowd, who were still discussing their options.

"I think I agree with Cricket on this one," a voice from the crowd piped up. "Even if he's leaving, it's still a good idea to help out the ones who have to stay."

A woman squeezed her way to the middle of the group, raising her hand. "We _do_ have a few vacant houses down by the southeast gate…"

"I can make room in my house for people!"

"I'm located in the northeastern district; I feel like I could be unsafe if I stayed for too long."

"I have extra storage up in my loft!"

Various calls of volunteers became louder, until the mayor silenced them with an "Alright, alright, alright!"

"So is that a yes from everyone?"

The group responded with an enthusiastic yes.

"If you're available to make room for anyone, meet with me tomorrow. We'll pick the subject up then."

The group then began to disperse, making their way back to their homes. A few people went to people who were traveling north, asking them if they wanted to stay the night just in case. A gust of a painful, cold wind blew towards the town, and everyone clutched their coats tighter to their bodies.

Satisfied, the mayor turned back towards his house and reached for the doorknob when a familiar voice greeted him.

"Edwin."

He turned around. Jowee's father. He held a bottle in his left hand.

"Bertrand! Thank you for coming to tonight's meeting, by the way. I wasn't expecting for it to be so cold. May I help you?"

He fiddled with the bottle in his hands. It was beginning to grow cold in his hands, and he handed it to the mayor.

"Mari found this at the beach earlier today. I feel like you should take a look at it."

The mayor looked at the glass. It had a note inside, and teeth marks were in the cork. Something about the bottle seemed familiar. "Mari?"

"Yeah. She tried reading it for herself a little bit, but I think you should take a look at it yourself."

He reached to open the door. The glowing warmth of the house drew him in. "Well… thank you, Bertrand. I will. You have a good night, alright?"

"Of course. You too."

* * *

With that, the mayor closed the door to his house, only to find Mari half-asleep, rolling around on the bed. She looked like she wanted to sleep, but could not find the motivation to.

"Mari? Why are you still up?"

Mari turned towards her dad, rubbing at her eye."There was too much yelling."

The mayor let out a breathy laugh, sitting down on the edge of her bed. "Heh, well, Unagi and Cricket are just like that sometimes."

"Hey, that's the bottle I found at the beach today." Mari pointed. "Jowee's dad took it away from me."

"Sure is," he replied, holding it up for her to see. She reached out for it, but he pulled it away from Mari. "Maybe you can read it later, Mari. We need to go to bed."

Mari obliged, which was the complete opposite of what her father was expecting. No tantrums, no complaining… She went along with it, laying her head down on a pillow and letting out a yawn.

"Oh, okay. Good night, dad."

And just like that, her eyes fluttered asleep.

"Good night, Mari."

Being as careful as he could to not wake his daughter up, the mayor tiptoed to his side of the house, attempting to not step on any squeaky floorboards. He let out a deep sigh as he reached his bed and threw his coat onto it. He didn't waste any time getting under the covers and settling into bed.

He would have fallen asleep right then, but there was still something on his mind. What was so important about that message in a bottle?

He reached for the bottle with the letter on it, resting upright on the nightstand, reaching again for his monocle with the other hand. He opened the bottle with a resounding pop, and shook out the letter. Unfurling it, he began to make out the words in the dim light.

It occurred to the mayor why this message was so important. He'd recognize this handwriting anywhere.

It was his own.

He had vague memories of writing the letter, but it all seemed so familiar at the same time. He read it twice before resting his head onto his pillow and falling asleep.

* * *

" _Dear Bea,_

" _At the time I write this, you have been away for two weeks. I can only hope this letter can find you before the time you return. I hope your research in Lavasteam has been going well. Writing those kind of things must be difficult to many, but I have no doubt you would have any trouble with that. You're one of the most talented writers I can think of."_

" _Events in town have slowed down drastically since you've been gone. It seems so dull and dreary whenever you're away. The only interesting event that has happened recently was when Wilfre broke into a stash of banya beer the other day. Now THAT was a sight to behold. I have never seen a person swear as much as that man had in my entire life! He has the wildest ideas. He told me in slurred speech on how 'gruesome' he found the Creator's drawings, saying he 'could do better'. Now, I'm no art critic, but I do not think I could trust a man like him to do such a thing."_

" _The weeks go on so slowly without you around. I miss you more and more every day. I am excited to hear about your research once you return, however. If there is any help you need with editing or advice, I am more than happy to help. The way you go on about your interests always bring me joy."_

" _This may be the wrong place and wrong time to confess this, but there have been recurring thoughts on my mind about your wellbeing. I know how hard it was for you to arrive in town with the eruption, and I can only imagine you could be homesick for Lavasteam. If you ever need to talk to me about it, if you ever need support… I can be here for you. I love you and care about you so much, and I just want you to feel alright. If you ever need anything, just know that."_

" _If you ever do find this, feel free to make fun of all the grammatical errors you like. I am currently writing this in one night with no revision, if that explains why. I just want to close off this letter saying that I miss you and I hope you return safely. I hope you are able to connect with your lost kin in Lavasteam, if you meet any, and that you are able to complete your research."_

" _-Yours, Edwin."_

 _(P.S.: If anyone besides Bea ever finds this, return it to the mayor in Rapoville. They will know what to do with it.)_


End file.
